Parachutes aren’t just for saving skydivers anymore. They are also an ingenious way of introducing dance, comedy and magic to an eager audience of children.

The Fred Garbo Inflatable Theater Co., which performed Saturday at the Lied Center, gets its name from the objects it utilizes (made from the same lightweight and colorful material as a parachute). The vibrant cubes, tubes and even furniture inflate to become props and often costumes for its lively stars, Fred Garbo and Krista Paulsen.

At times, one cannot distinguish between what is the costume and what is the performer. The morphing, effervescent shapes move to the mood of the show, frequently emitting as much emotion as the lines on a person’s face.

But the act doesn’t depend solely on these inflated props. Garbo uses several types of performance to bring the show to life. Juggling acts, yo-yo routines and vaudeville stunts enhance the larger-than-life balloons to create a well-rounded, enjoyable experience.

Founder Fred Garbo’s agile movements immediately amazed and amused the Lied Center audience. He plays different characters both inside and outside the bubbles, with several that use simple slapstick humor that is funny for all ages.

Garbo’s partner in dance, Krista Paulsen, carried herself gracefully across the stage, creating a ripple of awe among the youngsters in attendance. Her serene movements, paired with the boisterous costumes, created what looked to be bubbles of elegance that the audience really embraced. One young girl during Saturday’s performance exclaimed, “I want to be her for Halloween!”

The pair uses many types of music to display different varieties of performance. In one moment, heavy drumbeats accented the dance of a proud and intimidating red cube; in the next, Paulsen used the malleable costumes for a beautiful interpretation of Louis Armstrong’s “It’s a Wonderful World.” Garbo even employed a techno pulse to create his own rendition of “the robot” or in this case, a cube that morphed into a robot-shaped mass.

The performance has few spoken-word segments perfect for an exuberant audience of children. The frequent outbursts of excitement from the kids only added to the energy and life of the performance.

After the Lied Center show, Garbo threw several of the inflated objects into the audience, much to the delight of children and parents alike. For just a moment, the orchestra pit transformed into a playground with bubbles of orange, yellow and blue bouncing through the crowd.